System of temperature control



Jan.9,1923 MIMEMQT,

T y E. P. RICH.

SYSTEM 0F TEMPERATURE CONTROL.

Fit-ED OCT. 1920.

" VACUUM RETURN STEA M SUPPLY liant 9, i923,

UNITED s'rarss EDWARI) RICH, 0]? CHICAGO, l'LIlINIt.

0F TEMPERATURE GQITJTTRIOL.

Application. :tiled October 1, w22()t To all 'whom if' may concern.'

Be it known that I, EDWARD P. Rioni, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chica-go, .in the county of Cool; and State ot Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Systems of Ternperature Control, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to .systems et teniu perature control, and the object is to provide sureecting and sensitive means Jfor controlling va steam radiator or similar heating element. I obtain these objects by the mech anisin illustrated. in the accompanying drawincs in whichi Figure l is a general side elevation partly in axial section showing the radiator Aand the complete control mechanism;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary detail showing the different positions of the pilot or bypass valve.

Like numerals denote like parts in both views.

In the particular 'forni selected to illustrate the invention steanl is lcd to the radiator 'l through a steam supply pipe 2. return pipe d leads thc steam and. condensed moisture baer` to the boiler. By preference the return pipe maintained, under a low vacuum. It is desirable, although not necessary, to provide a steam trap at the radiator outlet 4. A standard device is illustrated in which the body 6 of the trap has a valve seat 'l' adapted to cooperate with a valve 8, and a bellows o1' expansion element 9 is mounted in the body 6 and actuatcs valve il. lin the presence of steain lthe bellows enpands and holds the valve closed, whereas it the temperature drops and moisture collects, the bellows will contract and open the valve* The parts thus tar described are standard and well lmown, and the design may be varied without departinp; troni the spirit of? the invention.

Considering now more particularly the parts involved in the present invention: The entrance of steam from pipe Q, to the diator is controlled by a inain valve l2 which cooperates with a valve seat 13. The valve stem which controls the valve .i2 passes serial un. crtois.

out throupgli a stullhig0 bor; 1G and into a control chamber i8 where it is attached to and operated by a tliernio-sensitive bellows or expansion elenient 20. The construction is such .that when bellows 20 is in the presence et steain it will expand and close the inain valve the absence oit' steam, when the temperature tall-s, the bellows will. contract and. open the valve. In order to prevent hapje from the control chamber, it is de le to have the stein 14; pass out through a paclrless valve which .is simply a col lapsible steam tight structure oit well known type which permits the .stern to rise and tall and operates with practically no friction.

The steain supply to the control chamber itl is supplied by a bypass 24- which leads troni steain supply pipe directly lto the control chamber, passing; around the inain valve iQ. ln this bypass are located two valves, viz, a needle valve 26 which is hand controlled and a bypass or outlet valve 28 which is controlled thermostatically. The parte are so constructed that the pilot valve stands open when the inaiiu valve is closed, thus perniiitt. 1 a constant flow oit steam under such conditions: und the purpose of the needle vulve 2G is to enable the attendant to reduce this i'low to the lowest degree at which the system will operate, thereby reducing: the steain consumption tor control purposes to a ininiinuin.

its intimated, the pilot or `master valve 28 is controlled therinostatically, and accordingu to the present design the mechanism consists ot un expansion bellows or other forni of thermostat BU, in the present case housed Y`4hin a chamber and located ttor con venience beneath the radiator. It is desirable, iu order not to have the thermostat teo atly inl'luencod by the direct heat ot the radiator., to encase the chamber in a iaclret 341 ot insulatinp; material. hastened to and operated by the thermostatic elernent 30 is a rod 36 which pivotally connected to the 'tree end ot a Ilever which actuates valve 28. Vifhen the rooni temperature, to which the thermostat subject, exceeds the pre determined niaxirnnin temperature, the then moetatfc element 30 espande, thus moving O .tra

in i ure llo open positiom shown in itull lines in iligure 2. Conversely. when the room temperatur-e t'alls below such degree, the thermostatic element contracts and moves the pilot valve to closed position shown in l? igure l.

An outlet pipe l0 leads from control chamber 18 to the vacuum return' pipe 3 beneath the steam trap (i. It is desirable to furnish this with a hand operated needle valve 42 and with a strainer 4a. The attendant by properly adjusting valve 42. especially with reterence to the position olE valve 26, can control the amount of steam which will accumulate in the control cham-- ber when the pilot valve is open. .lt is evident that by keeping valve 42 nearly closed and valve 26 wide open there will be a tendency for steam to accumulate in the control chamber when the pilot valve is open. This accumulated steam would tend to keep the main valve closed for a greater proportion of the time than it valve l2 were kept' wide open and valve 26 nearly closed. As there is a` vacuum in the return pipe fl and outlet or drain pipe 40, it is evident that if. valve 26 were nearly closed and valve 42 were Wide open, the tendency would be to keep the control chamber tree ol steam and hence the main valve 'l2 Ywould bc held opcn for a greater proportion ol' the time.

The principle ot' operation will now be readily understood. So long as the room temperature remains below` the predetermined maximuin, the thermostatic element 30 will hold the pilot valve 28 closed, thus cutting oil steam supply to the control chamber 18 and causing the pilots 20 to hold the main valve open. This enables the radiator to Warm the room and maintain the desired degree ot' temperature in it. As soon as the room temperature exceeds the predetermined maximum the thern'iosta-tic element 3() expands and opens the pilot valve 2Q, thus admitting steam to the control chamber '18 and causing the bellows 20 to expand and close the main valve l2. As longlr as the room thus remains overheated, the main valve will remain closed. but there will bc :i slight `flow of steam through the bypass 2l. The amount of steam cousunurition for roiitrol purposes is practically negligible. it being possible by rec'ul.. ing proliierly tbe valves 26 and 42 rto n the desired results by an almost inappreciable amount of steam. Among the other advantages oil' my apparatus is that it is compact and all paris may be located practically at the radiator itself'. Another advantage is that the constri'lction is simple and that the moving;r parts are actuated by Well known and standard elements that are positive and forceful in their operation. Furthermore, the apparatus requires no particular equipment in the radiator itsell', but is in the nature of an attachment and there l'ore may be applied to old installations as well as new.

l lavinp thus described my invention, what ll claim as new and desire lo secure by liettcrs latent is:

Vl. ln a heating system, the combination of a radiator. a steam supply pipe leadingr thereto, a main shut-off valve for controlling:` the steam supply, a control chamber, a` thermo-sensitive clement in said control chamber adapted to actuate said valve and close the same when said element is heated, a bypass leading from the stcaln-supply pipe, on the supply side of the main shut-oil val re. to said control chamber. a lnastcr valvc in said bypass. a thermostat for controllingr said master valve, and means for exerting constant suction Vfrom said control chamber, whereby when the master viilve is closed the hot vapor will be promptly withdrawn from the control chamber to enable the thermosensitive element to cool promptly, and when the master valve is open the steam will he induced to flow promptly from the bypass into said control chamber to hasten the heatin;r of said thermo-sensitive element.

2. ln a vacuum heating! system. the combination otl a` radiator, a steam supply pipe leading' thereto. a main shut-ofi` valve for rontrolliiuil thc steam supply, a. control chamber, a tliernio-sensitive element in said control chamber. adapted to actuate said valve and close the same when heated. a bypass leading from the steam supply pipe' on the supply side of the main shut-off valve to said control chamber, a master valve in said bypass. a thermostat for controlling said master valve. a vacuum return pipe leadingY troni the radiator. and a pipe leadino; from said control chamber to said vanuum return pipe.

lo a vacuum heatinpi system, the combination of a radiator. a steam supply pipe leading! thereto. n main shut-off valve for controllingf thc steam supply` a control chambcr. a thermo-sensitive clement in said cnntrol chamber adapted to actuate said valve and close the salue when heated. a bypass leading from thc steam supply pipe on the supply side of tbc main shut o' valvr` to said control chamber. n nuls'lcr valve in said by pass. .1i thermostat l'or controllingrsaid master valve, u -vacuuvn return pipe leading from the radiator and a pipe leading from the bottom of said control chamber to said vacuum return for inducingr flow into said chamber and also positively withdrnwinpr thei'efrom both vapor and water of condensation.

d. ln a` heatingr system having a radiator provided with a steam supply pipe. a. vacuum return pipe and a main valve for controlling the flow of steam to the radiator: a control chamber having a thermo-sensitive elelill lIO

lllfi ment for emltlollirng the main valve, a byw page leading :from the Steam Supply pipe to the contro] chamber, a, drain pipe lead ing' 'from the control Chamber direct to the vaeliuml return pipe for sucking steam and moisture out of the control. chamber, e thermally Controlled pilot valve n. said bypass, and. manually controlled regulating valves regulating valves een Vary the Aheet Coletti@ 'tions in Said control eh amber.

In Witness; whereof, I have helreuuto euh Sellloed my name.

EDWARD P. RJCH'. 

